I Want to Be a VTuber

---

YHJ Broadcasting Station suddenly fell quiet, as if cold water had been poured over it.

It was only natural.

The figure just pointed out by the director was none other than a Korean actress.

Though I previously thought highly of Reika’s great performance, the director’s gaze was already on the woman who had exited the room.

“What do we do, Nanjou PD?”

“This is truly unexpected.”

Nanjou Kazuo, who had called Seo-yeon to Japan, wiped the sweat accumulating on his forehead with a handkerchief.

There was reason for that.

They had put in a significant effort to invite him from Japan this time.

Getting him to move wasn’t just a matter of throwing money at him.

The film production committee had pulled out all the stops and managed to get this figure to attend.

“Um, Mister Baldwin…”

In the end, it was Nanjou PD, who had exceptional English skills, who had to speak up.

Asher Baldwin.

An American director who’s worked across a range of genres in film.

He raised his profile by filming indie movies and, right after receiving funding, created a fantastic fantasy movie that won him a directing award.

Following that, the biopics he made won various awards back-to-back.

His career was at such a remarkable level that it couldn’t simply be summarized as “impressive.”

However, there had been a slip in his success a few years ago.

For about five years now, he hadn’t produced notable results.

Of course, it wasn’t quite fair to say he was a failure, as he still had the name recognition of a director.

“More than anything, it was exactly because of that situation that we were able to invite him to Japan.”

Nanjou sighed inwardly as he looked at Asher Baldwin, who was gazing at him with an indifferent expression.

The filming environment in Japan differed significantly from that overseas.

Such behavior from an international heavyweight was typically not accepted by production committees.

From the perspective of the broadcasting station’s PD, it was an exceptionally unfamiliar experience.

In Japan, there were times when directors had less standing than regular salarymen.

“I made a request.”

“Are you talking about that actor?”

“Yes, that actor. The one mixing in with the other extras.”

Asher Baldwin gestured for them to rewind the footage.

He wore a face that suggested he had no interest in the performance of Koto Reika, the proudly celebrated actress from Japan.

This, of course, left the broadcasting station with little choice but to feel embarrassed.

“May I ask why?”

At Nanjou PD’s words, Asher’s elegant eyebrows twitched.

It seemed like he was scrutinizing whether it was a sincere question.

It was a gaze that seemed to imply, ‘You guys can’t even see her value?’

“I know.”

Of course, Nanjou PD knew.

Most in attendance probably knew as well.

Even those who turned their noses up at the mention of a Korean actor couldn’t take their eyes off the footage once it was played.

A video lasting just over a minute.

Simple gestures and a few spoken lines.

The varied expressions that followed.

There would be many impressive portions, but two things stood out the most.

“Appearance.”

The most impactful element in under a minute was probably that above all else.

And secondly.

“Presence.”

He didn’t want to admit it, but in this short video, others seemed to fade away.

Despite a scene featuring the male lead Kento, his eyes were drawn away to an unknown extra.

It reminded him of a manga he had read years ago.

Although it had unfortunately been canceled, there was a quote from it.

“You get overshadowed by the extras, doesn’t it?”

It was a phrase devoid of any comedic value, but it felt somewhat true in this case.

“I see.”

Asher, reading Nanjou’s expression, spoke up.

He explained why he had singled out that actress in that scene.

“Capturing the audience’s gaze is a talent vital for an actor, or rather…”

After pondering for a moment, he opened his mouth again.

“To be precise, it’s a quality needed for a lead actor.”

It’s not suitable for an extra.

He seemed to imply, but at the same time, he wasn’t wrong.

Judging from that scene, it was structured with the expectation that someone would stand out.

“The director has good taste.”

Asher thought so.

Of course, that was under the assumption that he recognized the actress’s talent.

In all honesty, he had a tendency to underestimate movies or dramas produced in Japan.

Well, he still thought that way now.

However, even from this short composition of just over a minute, certain things could be gleaned.

It could be coincidence, but if it was intentional…

“Therefore, this actress…”

“What do you mean?”

“Hah.”

Asher shook his head.

After saying this much, they should have understood, yet they were just wearing foolish expressions.

“If we’re making a movie, I want to cast this actress.”

It was what he had anticipated.

Nanjou PD felt as if he were going to collapse from this terrible situation.

No, it was fortunate that he didn’t storm out, claiming that all Japanese actors were worthless.

After all, when he had shown materials of other actors, it was clear they wanted nothing more than to leave.

In reality, Asher Baldwin was infamous for his eccentric personality.

He was the kind of man who would say what he thought, even if it meant never stepping foot on Japanese soil again.

“This actress might be a bit difficult.”

“What? Wasn’t this video shown to present this actress? Didn’t I say her name is Koto Reika?”

It seemed Asher was seriously mistaken in this regard.

Well, it was no wonder he hadn’t paid any attention to Reika’s performance.

He had treated her like any other extra from the start.

“The actress you’re talking about is a Korean actress.”

Nanjou PD said the name of the actress who had visited their broadcasting station not long ago, facing the flustered Asher.

Just the week prior, an interview variety show they filmed had been aired, and the actress was one that was being closely monitored by YHJ due to the “Gyeongseong Young Lady” role.

That name.

And, that Korean actress was…

“Wait, wait a second, Seo-yeon! Jo Seo-hee, get off her right now! Why are you looking at me like that?”

She was in a very clingy situation with a close friend.

***

Seo-yeon had become a romance master.

It truly was a long time coming.

After hearing past stories from Yeo-hee and getting a good sense of it, she had watched several related films.

Recently, she had even completed a few female-oriented romance fantasies to grasp what the feel was like.

“The female-oriented fantasy still has many parts I don’t quite understand.”

However, even when trying to perform that role, Seo-yeon’s romance part had been pushed quite far back.

Most of the important scenes were shot first, and then they planned to shoot the romance.

{Well, that’s only natural.}

A refreshingly cool male voice echoed in her ears.

By the way, Seo-yeon wasn’t actually talking to that man at that moment.

It was through Discord.

In other words, she was gaming while having a voice chat.

And the only person she could engage in such a talk with was one person nearby.

The person around Seo-yeon who played games worse than her.

That was Park Jung-woo.

{Originally, the character you mentioned, Yuina, is more of a villain first, right? Showing the villainous side first and then shifting to the romance part would probably maintain emotional consistency and be more comfortable.}

“That seems more like it, but it may also have to do with the filming in Japan afterward.”

{Ah, so there’s no appropriate building fitting for Michiko’s Mansion?}

“Yes.”

Seo-yeon clicked her mouse enthusiastically, throwing a mushroom.

Watching the opponent howling in pain from stepping on the mushroom made her feel quite pleased.

{Director Baek Min, I’ve heard some things about him, but he’s amazing to take you all the way to Japan for that, right?}

“Moreover, it feels like most of the landscapes and sceneries fit into Japan.”

{Is there a snow scene?}

“Yes.”

{Then it makes sense. The place to film that is mainly Japan. Using CG costs a lot of money. Oh!}

As he said that, Jung-woo’s character died.

Though he didn’t suffer a significant loss from dying to the cold wind, usually…

“You’re dying way too much, like a headbutting dinosaur.”

{Don’t try to slap that meme on me.}

“But your deaths are almost more than mine, right?”

Listening to Seo-yeon’s boastful voice made Jung-woo’s forehead tense in annoyance.

In fact, Jung-woo originally played games occasionally to take a break.

However, having been teased by Seo-yeon so often, he found himself practicing on his own.

There’s nothing more irritating for a guy than to be told he’s bad at games, he realized.

{I’m already at Platinum tier, you know?}

“……”

Seo-yeon was momentarily at a loss for words.

In a game where physical ability was important, she had been practically flying, but that wasn’t the case in Summoner’s Rift.

Of course, Seo-yeon was Plat too.

But Jung-woo had put in fewer games to reach that tier.

Having been focused on the earlier game, Seo-yeon felt a growing sense of crisis.

To be precise, she was getting a bit tired of the Rift.

“People who bring up their tier first just seem unappealing.”

{…Didn’t you just say that to me before?}

“And these days, high school students don’t play LoL that much.”

{Then what do they play? Valorant?}

“Something along those lines…”

She had a feeling she didn’t play many PC games in general.

Anyway, while Seo-yeon was saying that, she suddenly thought of Young-bin.

Considering that there were several challenges related to “Masked Singer”, she couldn’t help but feel it was quite a concern.

She ought to make a game of her own.

Or perhaps stay with a big corporation?

But even if she made a game, she felt anxious in many ways.

“I have to help Yeo-hee with her request too.”

Well, she had to listen to Yeo-hee’s demands somewhat, of course, since she had helped Seo-yeon with her acting.

What did she say again?

Probably something like…

“I mean, you don’t have to overdo it. Can you please tell Suah that I really want to meet her? Just to be clear, it’s Suah, not Young-bin? For real? But no pressure, seriously.”

Looking at that, it didn’t feel like it was meant to be casual.

When it came to the whole “meeting” thing, the inclusion of “really” was contradictory.

And even calling her mom…

It wasn’t a subtly creepy phrase that showed some dubious intent.

“If I mention this, will they end up filming an infidelity drama?”

Seo-yeon felt just a little worried.

Had she underestimated Yeo-hee’s lingering attachment?

She thought it would just be a nice memory, but perhaps that was a misconception.

Lost in thought, Seo-yeon suddenly checked the time.

“Ah, I think I should log off. It’s almost time for my appointment.”

{You? An appointment?}

“……Does that sound like I don’t have anyone to make an appointment with? I’m a busy person, you know.”

{I know, I know. The illustrious Joo Seo-yeon. She’s doing great, right?}

“If I run over there now, I can get there in five minutes, you know? How about a sparring match?”

{Huh? But we’re in Gangnam, you know?}

“So in five minutes.”

{What? What kind of airplane is that?}

Thinking it was ridiculous, Jung-woo still felt torn between whether it was real or sarcasm.

Of course, it was a joke.

No matter how fast Seo-yeon was, she couldn’t possibly sprint over to Gangnam in five minutes.

That sort of feat was only possible for a plane.

But Jung-woo couldn’t outright deny it was a joke from Seo-yeon.

For some reason, he got the feeling that she just might be able to pull it off.

“Of course, it was a joke. Do you really believe that?”

{…No…ha, forget it.}

Jung-woo sighed.

What caught his attention more than that was the part about her appointment.

Seo-yeon usually spent her idle time playing games when she wasn’t filming.

Even without playing with Jung-woo, she often spent hours on console games.

“I’m going to hang out at my friend’s house who’s in the reserves.”

{Your friend in reserves?}

“Actually, she’s a friend, but I call her that because it’s just fun.”

{Ah, Jo Seo-hee…}

With a sigh, Jung-woo recalled the actress who bore the original sin of parachuting into the industry.

‘I must never give her such a pretext.’

Seo-yeon considered herself quite lenient, but Jung-woo knew better.

While she might have been lenient with most things, crossing her pride would easily ignite her petty side.

***

In reality, Seo-yeon hadn’t really perceived Seo-hee as being wealthy.

The nice cars she had shown a couple of times had turned into good bicycles somewhere along the line.

And other than that, she didn’t wear particularly expensive clothing either.

Seo-yeon had gone to Miri Park with her once, but honestly, that hadn’t felt right.

From her point of view, it was merely participating in the company’s work and events.

Nothing more, nothing less.

But human beings are strange.

“What do you think?”

Seo-yeon said as she looked up appreciatively.

“……It’s huge.”

To think such a large standalone house would belong to Seo-hee.

Living in an ordinary house, Seo-yeon was momentarily lost for words.

Her house wasn’t exactly poor, but how should she put it?

Should she say it felt entirely different?

“This area is a bit far from the center, so the land price is cheap.”

One couldn’t simply nod at that.

“Look, Ji-yeon doesn’t even care.”

“I’ve been here often. And why are you grinning like that?”

“Huh? No reason.”

Seo-hee rubbed her hands over her previously smiling face.

Well, it had been a long time since a friend had come over to her house.

Even more so!

Wasn’t it Seo-yeon who had first said she wanted to come over?

‘Could it be that I’ve finally escaped the friend-in-need zone?’

Half-friends, friend-in-reserves, or friend-in-need, he knew that Seo-hee recognized those labels.

So Seo-yeon’s visit was something quite special.

“But what’s this, Lee Ji-yeon?”

“Uh? It’s beer.”

“?”

“It’s non-alcoholic. Non-alcoholic.”

No, minors can’t buy even non-alcoholic drinks, can they?

Seo-yeon looked at Ji-yeon with those eyes.

“I just brought it since we had it at home. Isn’t that the usual thing?”

At Ji-yeon’s words, Seo-hee narrowed her eyes again.

Could she really be a delinquent?